I got this picture of Colby as I was going back inside for the day. I so want to snuggle this fluffball! We’ve had no progress in socialization. *sigh*
Today, I needed to go into town to pick up a prescription so, of course, I did as many other things as I could think of while I was there.
The first thing to do was visit my mother in the hospital.
It was a short visit. She started to go off on things again, and I called her out on it. Her response, as usual, it to verbally attack me for being such a terrible person, projecting invented motivations for while I don’t agree with her. She did change tactics when I simply got up and started to leave, though, and I did stay a bit longer.
It was a very productive visit, though. I remembered to grab the pendant for her Lifeline. I explained to her that her account is on hold right now, which means she’s being charged at a 60% discount. She was already upset that she was paying anything for the service in the first place, when she “wasn’t using it” (she was, but that’s another issue), so of course, she didn’t like that. I told her that once the account is closed, they will have to come over to get their machine and the pendant – and she had the pendant with her!
Not anymore. I’ll take it to her place as soon as I have a chance to check on her apartment again.
That got us to talking about what she wanted us to do with her stuff, should she be placed… somewhere. I suspect, not a nursing home, but more likely assisted living or supportive living. She wants my sister to take some things, which I think they’ve already talked about. My mother was a bit upset that my sister wanted to keep a print of Mona Lisa that my mother was thinking of donating to a local museum.
I don’t think a museum would want it. It has zero historical value. My mother just really likes it. I got a different story about how we got it, though. Previously, I was told it, and another framed print, were found in the attic of this house when my parents bought it, back in 1964 or so. Recently, though, my mother told me she’d bought the print herself and had someone local frame it. If the first story were true, then the print and frame would very well be almost 100 years old. If the second story is true, it’s about 50-60 years old.
The reason she isn’t sure she wants my sister to take it is, she has no children, and what’s going to happen to it when she gets to be my mother’s age and needs to pass it on?
Yup. My mother wants to control what happens to it for multiple generations.
I asked her, why is she so worried about material things like that? If my sister wants it, let her have it! These are her treasures, she told me. I reminded her that the Bible says our treasures are in heaven. She choked on that a bit, then told me how glad she was that I know the Bible so well, but there’s just one problem. I need to go to church!
*sigh*
The thing is, even when we were going to church regularly, before moving out here, it wasn’t good enough, anyhow. It wasn’t the “right kind” of church. In the end, it isn’t about going to church at all, but about control, and I’m not the marshmallow I used to be. She doesn’t like that.
Still, we did manage to have an okay visit, before I headed to the pharmacy. After that, I decided to go to the dollar store (we have just the one) to look for blanket yarn. My mother is happy with the sleep hat I made for her, then mentioned she sometimes uses it to keep her hands warm, so I will make her a muff for her hands. I couldn’t find the same variegated yarn I used for her hat, but I did find a solid grey that is the same as one of the greys in her hat. I have just a bit of the variegated yarn left that I should be able to use as an accent.
From there, I made a quick stop at the grocery store for something my husband requested. They didn’t have it, so I found a substitute, then got a couple more things, just to add to our supple. We’re still planning to do a cookout soon, and the only thing we’re running low on that I want to use for that is potatoes.
After that, there was one last stop for gas. *sigh* The prices just jumped from $1.109/L to $1.229/L
Once at home, I updated my brother on how things went with my mother, had some lunch, then headed back outside.
The first thing I wanted to work on was the fire pit. I had a cover on it, piled with snow, but more snow managed to get under it, too. I made sure to clean up the paths to the food pile and the branch pile, first, then did as much as I could with the fire pit. We’ve been putting small branches, pieces of bark and such, into it during the summer, expecting to be able to burn them in a cookout, but we never got to use it all summer. Even after the fire bans ended, it was usually too windy to even consider it.
After getting a pork roast out of the freezer, I was thinking of cooking in the fire pit tomorrow, but after talking about it with my daughters, we decided to wait another day. Which turned out to be a good thing. After clearing the snow and bits of wood out of the fire pit, I found it too frozen to clear ashes away from the fire bricks I have on one side. They are there to put the Dutch oven on, so the legs don’t sink into the ground or ashes below. So I cleared as much as I could, then left it uncovered. Tomorrow is supposed to be another mild day, and the dark snow/ashes will melt faster in the sun that way. I should be able to clear the fire bricks by late afternoon.
I did swing the grill back over the fire pit after taking the picture, though. The stacks in the background of the picture are what I cleared out of the pit.
That done, it was late enough to pause and feed the outside cats, but early enough to do more shoveling. You can see the final result in the next two pictures of the above slide snow.
Yes, I was able to clear a path all the way to the sign cam! I really thought it would have to be split between a couple of days, but the snow turned out to be less packed than I expected.
I really do enjoy shoveling snow! I’ll probably pay for it tomorrow, but gosh, it felt good.
Getting the path cleared meant I could finally switch out the trail cam memory card. It should be interesting to see how many files are on the card. The solar panel on the camera was covered in snow when I got to it, but the batteries were at 91%. I do expect there to be gaps over the days when we got that deep freeze, as the batteries would have gotten too cold to power anything. Still, it’s been over a month. I’m almost dreading to see how many files there are! It’s going to take a while to go through them.
Meanwhile, my awesome daughter has been diligently working on hemming the overalls she got for me, and finished soon after I was back inside. Of course, I had to try them on right away, and they are exactly the length I wanted – a touch on the long side, since they’ll be worn over boots. They’re so comfortable, I kept them on. The fabric is pretty stiff, so the more they are worn, the faster it will soften. They will be prefect for when I head back outside tomorrow to finish clearing the fire pit.
Oh, I do wish I had a way to record things easily while I was shoveling. The yard cats are really loving the warmer weather and running around like kittens. They were also loving the paths I was clearing, and the new one I dug out, running and jumping, following me around, chasing each other, and just having a grand old time! We’re still expected to have mild weather for the next week to 10 days, if not the above freezing high they were predicting for this coming Monday. That has been pushed back another week, and then the high of the day is supposed to drop by over 20° and stay frigid for about a week! Considering how much the predictions have been fluctuating, though, who knows what will actually happen. For now, though, the cats are greatly appreciating the warmer temperatures – and so am I!
What I need to figure out, though, is what I will be doing for starting seeds this year. I should be starting bulb onions right now. We still need to move the aquarium greenhouses to be basement, but have no idea how we can get the big one down the stairs and around the corner at the bottom, without breaking anything. Getting the aquariums and the shelf the big one rests on is becoming more important, since we will likely be bringing my mother’s couch in. Actually, we still have the couch. She took the matching love seat to her apartment when she moved off the farm. It’s small enough that it should fit right where the big aquarium is set up right now.
Starting the onion seeds, though, probably shouldn’t wait until we figure all that out. This year, I’m thinking to try doing them in a “snail” roll, to make it easier to separate them when it’s time to transplant in the spring. That should be small enough that they can be set up in the living room to germinate.
I ended up awake for most of the night. Just couldn’t sleep for some reason.
Which turned out to be a good thing!
I spotted a message waiting for me, from the woman we passed Kohl on to, yesterday. (Kohl, I’ve just been informed, is now with her foster, and I will get more updates once they connect again, later today.)
Of course, we ended up talking cats. I was asked about any adult friendlies that were already spayed or neutered that could go into foster for adoption.
The problem is, it seems the fosters they have (and they urgently need more) are not equipped to socialize more feral cats. Yes, we have friendlies, and yes, they have access to things like litter boxes that they use, but they are still outside cats. They need to learn how to transition to the indoor life. We’ve been fortunate in having several that just came indoors and adapted immediately. However, even Tiny, who came in as a kitten before she was old enough to go into her first heat, has still not completely adapted. There are just too many cats, and she is a shy one. I hardly ever even get a chance to pet her, and it’s been about 2 – 2 1/2 years. She has, however, bonded with David. He doesn’t care all that much, but she adores him.
In the end, I suggested that it would be easier if we put some of the inside cats out for adoption (while still focusing on getting outside cats spayed and neutered), but not necessarily going to fosters. If we can make enough space indoors, that would free us up to take in an outside cat or two at a time, to socialize them to the indoor life before they get put up for adoption. Right now, we just don’t have the space for it. We’re used to working with outside cats to get them indoors. Something most fosters aren’t.
I was asked how many we had inside, which is currently 21. Of those, all but four, possibly five, should be adopted. Which would be great, though I suspect at least three of them would be considered “unadoptable”. It’s hard enough to adopt out healthy kittens. People just don’t want adult cats much, and they certainly don’t want ones that aren’t “perfect” for some reason. Tiny and David would need to go as a bonded pair. It’s not going to be easy. I’ve seen some of the cats and kittens they’ve been posting about that still haven’t been adopted out. If no one is interested in those gorgeous, healthy cats, it’s going to be much harder for some of ours.
We shall see. Hopefully, some of them have traits that appeal to people who want a “different” cat.
I did mention Sir Robin in the conversation, though, as he has not been well. He needs vet care, but we don’t have the funds for it. I was asked for pictures and possibly video of friendly outside cats, so when I did the morning feeding, I took as many as I could, with a focus on Sir Robin.
Stinky needs a new name. He doesn’t fart on people anymore. 😄 He’s one of the neutered and socialized adult cats that would make a great indoor cat.
I spent much of the morning, sending pictures of specific cats and passing on as much information as I had. That meant looking up old photos. Which always leads to mixed emotions. It’s awesome to see some of them as kittens and growing up, but then there’s all the pictures of cats and kittens that didn’t make it. There has been quite a lot. Even just this past year, quite a few adults disappeared. Brussel, Caramel, Lady Hypotenose, Ink, Syndol, Patience, Magda and a similar looking cat with no name. Only Poirot was one where we knew what happened, and it was pure chance we spotted her remains on the road at all. Then there are the kittens we lost, plus the adults we don’t see enough to be sure if they are gone, or just away for a while – or they look so similar, we just can’t tell when any are missing. The white and greys can be really hard to tell apart, along with the grey or brown tabbies.
So we are going to work on getting glamour shots of the inside cats. We’re thinking of putting together “set” in the living room, so we can bring one cat in at a time to get some photos and video. One person would play with the cat to get its attention, while the other tries to get good photos and/or video.
What we can’t do is have people come to our place to look at the cats in person. Aside from being out of the way, whenever we have people here, our vandal starts stalking again, and they’d be driving past his place to get to us. Which means we’d have to arrange to meet in town, instead. That wouldn’t happen until after potential adoptees have started the application process with the rescue.
Meanwhile, they’re going to see if they can arrange for appointments for more spays or neuters. I still have the donated funds for the three that didn’t get done, because they were too small, so we’re looking to probably start with three at once. I’d be grabbing whoever is easiest to get, which are all males, though I would really want to get Frank in. Seeing how bloody she was after she had her kittens has me thinking she might not survive another pregnancy.
I so appreciate this new rescue trying to help us, even with our rather unusual issues. They were overwhelmed with cats before they even officially opened, and things haven’t really changed.
What we need in our area is our own version of the Furball Farm Cat Sanctuary, specializing in strays and ferals. Our colony is just one of many in our region. From what I hear, it’s even worse at the town to the north of us, and that’s saying a lot!
You know, when we moved out here, the last thing I expected was to find ourselves in this situation! We’ve found ourselves as an unexpected rescue in the past, but nothing like what we’re dealing with now! That was more along the lines of “we discovered black mold in our house and need to move immediately, but can’t take our cats with us, please help!” and “I’m going overseas for a job for the next year or two, can you take my cats?” sort of thing. Not a colony situation, with bringing female cats in as population control, or others because they had to have surgery and couldn’t go back outside.
Still, I can certainly understand why my late father loved his cats! My mother didn’t like having pets indoors, but there was always barn cats, even after they retired from farming, and they made my father so happy.
They do have a way of worming their way into our hearts, that’s for sure!
I’ve been talking with the rescue about her, because she is so incredible matted. They just got a new foster, so Kohl will be their first rescue! This should work out, as Kohl is already socialized and spayed, so she should be an easy one. They’ve already posted pictures of her on social media, requesting a volunteer groomer, or someone who could sponsor a groomer. She is so badly matted, she will likely need need a total shave. I picked her up and snuggled her this morning, and it was hard to find a place on her body that did NOT have any mats!
Tomorrow, I’ll be heading into the city to do our Costco stock up shopping. Instead of going to the new one, like we did last time, we’ll be going to our usual location. There’s a mall nearby where we’ll meet up with someone from the rescue and hand over Kohl. (I’m pretty sure my younger daughter will be coming with me, though I haven’t confirmed that yet.) After Kohl it picked up, we’ll hit the mall for breakfast/lunch before hitting the Costco.
There has already been interest shown in adopting Kohl, though one of the people in the rescue is very tempted to adopt her, herself. However, like us, she already has too many indoor cats!
With the stock up shopping about to happen, my goal for today was the clear more of the inner yard so there would be more room for the truck to turn around and back up to the house.
This is how it looked when my daughter first cleared a turn around space towards the outhouse, as well as a path to the litter compost pile behind it.
While she used little Spewie, I would break up the edges of with the snow shovel so that it would be easier for Spewie to get through, as the snow was too deep and areas were getting packed pretty hard by high winds. It took quite a while for my daughter to clear the space, and it left her having to use a cane for the next two or three days!
When I tried to actually use the turn around space, it turned out that “point” in the middle was still a problem. One corner of the truck hit it as I turned. That normally wouldn’t have been a problem except 1) the snow was even more hard packed by then and 2) the plastic shield under the bumper was already loose on that corner and held in place with clear duct tape. That got torn loose, and now it’s hanging again. Even if I had more of the duct tape, I couldn’t use it because it’s too cold for adhesive to stick.
So my main focus was to widen the whole area but to especially clear out that “point”.
In the first picture, you can see I was also able to clear a path to the outhouse (our emergency second bathroom). I used a shovel to clear space at the door so it had room to swing open, because there’s a high density foam mat under the snow that somehow has raised edges. The last time I tried to clear in front of the door with Spewie, it caught on the mat and actually tore it up a bit!
The path to the litter compost pile was already done by my daughter before, so I just used a shovel to clear it again a bit more, then tidied it up a bit with Spewie, later.
In the next picture, you can see where I’d widened the area by the tree a bit, and turned that “point” into a diagonal. The first 50 feet or so weren’t to bad, but past that, the snow was so hard packed, I couldn’t use the shovel to break it up anymore. I had to use the ice scraper to basically chop the snow up into pieces small enough for Spewie to be able to go over them without breaking.
I honestly felt tempted to stop and get a machete to try cutting snow blocks and build an igloo! 😄 Or even just snow walls strategically placed to block the wind. That area’s snow would have been ideal for that.
In the last picture, you can see I cleared space on the other side of the sidewalk, too. There had been a small triangle of snow between paths that I got rid of completely. That gives us more room to back up, plus move around the back of the truck with the tail gate open.
Once that was done, I decided to see how much more I could do. After adding a third extension cord from the garage, I had enough length to not only clean up and widen some cat paths, but I was able to clear a path to the fire pit and BBQ, clear enough space around the fire pit for chairs, paths to the wood pile and branch pile, and finally a path around the old kitchen garden so we can access the septic tank, if needed.
I’m so glad I set up the emergency septic bypass before the snow fell. There’s so much snow on top of it right now, you can barely see where the pipes and hose are at all! I don’t expect we’ll need to use it. If the ejector was going to freeze again like last winter, it would have happened by now. Still, it’s good that it’s set up now, just in case. If we did end up needing to use it, the only thing we’d need to do is clear the snow away from the end of the hose in the maple grove, so the grey water wouldn’t end up freezing into a block at the end.
Then, I did some clearing in the outer yard. I widened some turning space to get into the garage – that required more breaking up of snow with the ice scraper, too. Last of all, I cleared some paths to a couple of my brother’s trucks. He has solar panel trickle chargers set up in their windows. He was able to use his gas powered snow blower to clear a path to one truck, but it was too big to clear paths to the other two. I’d checked on them to clear snow away from the windows in front of the solar panels, and found the snow was quite deep. For me, that’s something that could easily result in my having another fall. I could have shoveled the paths, I suppose, but Spewie is small enough to get in there.
By the time I was done and put everything away, I’d been out there for more than three hours.
I really enjoy work like this, so it didn’t feel like it was very long at all, but once I was done and putting things away, my body was starting to tell me it wasn’t too happy!
On the plus side, my new coat was more than enough to keep me warm out there. I had tried to use the collar to keep my lower face warm, but all that really did was cause my glasses to frost up. I ended up going inside and my husband took them and set them aside from me, so most of this was done without my glasses. I could see a lot better without them than with!
Once I was inside and settling in with some food, things really started to stiffen up. I sat at my bedside to take my meds before eating, and had to get my daughter to help me stand up again, even though I now keep a cane with feet near my nightstand as an aid to standing up. It wasn’t enough today!
It does mean that I’ll probably have issues tomorrow, which is why I’m pretty sure one of my daughters will be coming with me, as my mobility assistant.
I figure today is a good day to go to bed early – after taking more painkillers!
I gotta say, though, it feels so good to get all that done, I really don’t mind the pain!
After my fall this morning, I really didn’t think I’d be up to doing much of anything for the rest of the day. I still think I’m really going to be feeling it tomorrow…
… and yet…
I ended up falling asleep for something like four hours. Checking my knees, my right knee has some swelling, though not at bad as I thought. I’m sure the anti-inflammatories have made a difference! I can take these up to three times a day, and I now have a 3 months supply. I’ve been taking them only once a day, if at all, so I can take more without any concerns of running out.
Much to my surprise, while my left knee is also starting to let me know that it got hurt, too, I am not in pain, in a general sense. It only hurts when something touches my knee, even if it’s just a cat tail brushing against my knee as I walk by. I’m definitely developing quite the bruise on my right knee.
The left side of my body is also letting me know it’s not happy. This is the side that I hurt the most when I had my fall in the summer. My left shoulder in particular has never really recovered from that. After landing on my right knee, it was my left side that hit the floor – after I bounced off that bucket – so it’s no surprise that my left side is feeling it more.
Still, after my nap, I felt really good. I am not limping, but I already hobble because of the OA and bone spurs in my feet, knees and hips, so I’m just penguin walking a bit more. Walking doesn’t hurt, but WOW am I thankful for all those arm bars that were installed for my late father. I need those at the best of time, and now is not the best of times! I’ve also got the cane with feet that stands on its own at my bedside. I don’t need to use the cane for walking, but I can use it to help me get up and down from my bed.
My daughters took care of changing all the litter boxes today, but a path to the litter pellet compost pile had to be cleared. When my daughter headed out to start on that, I headed out, too. I actually felt good enough to shovel more!
While getting the shovel down from where we hang it in the sun room, I realized that I didn’t actually trip on the cat carrier after all. Even with my fogged up glasses, I knew where it way. What I couldn’t see was the open door, and that’s what my foot caught on.
The carrier has been repositioned! We keep the carriers in various places in the sun room so the cats associate them with safety and comfort, so I didn’t want to move it out entirely.
One of the areas I worked on was the cat paths. Part of this was done this morning, before my fall.
I cleaned up the path to to the catio, then made a new path around all the shelters. This gives access to the little solar panels for the motion sensor lights inside the water bowl and kibble shelters, so we can clear them of snow as needed. I also cleared a second path to the catio shelter.
In the last picture of the above slide show, you can see the path the cats have made in the snow, to where they can get under the storage house. I’ve started to clear a path that way, but not very far, yet. Over time, we will clear a path to the corner of the storage house, and also redo the path to the fire pit and wood piles, so we can use it.
My daughter, meanwhile, was going the much bigger job of clearing turn around space, after making the path to the litter compost pile.
While she struggled with little Spewie, I was able to go behind her and use the snow shovel to break up the packed snow that had formed at the top. Some areas were drifted higher than Spewie is tall, so breaking that up made it easier for the little snow blower to get at it. In between passes, I cleared out a corner at the sidewalk area. This way, once pulled up to the house, we’ll have more room to open the doors and walk around it, while carrying things.
We didn’t finish the job completely, as it was starting to get pretty dark. My daughter has issues with working in the cold, as breathing cold air triggers coughing fits and hurts her lungs. She was wearing a home sewn cloth mask, but it’s snug against her face. Which means it quickly got very wet, resulting in her breathing in her own condensation. My new coat, when zipped all the way up, has a collar that reached up to my nose. That creates a warm bubble of air that prevents coughing fits. My daughter’s coat doesn’t have that. We need to find something she can wear while outside that will created the warm air bubble, but doesn’t touch her face.
Right now, we have enough space for the truck to turn around, though I still want to round out a corner, at the very least. After that, we have some turn around areas in front of the garage I want to widen a bit. I had a chance to walk around the outer yard before heading inside. My brother cleared enough in the outer yard to drive up to the barn, as well as their trailer and camper. He even cleared a path to the electric meter for me, so I can access it to do a reading.
While working on the inner yard, I could see where deer were digging around the the flower and haskap bed between the sidewalk and the vehicle gate. While walking around where my brother had cleared the snow, I found evidence showing the deer were using the cleared paths to get around, too! Much easier than fighting through the deep snow. 😁
Once everything was put away, we came inside to hot tea my older daughter made for us – turmeric and ginger tea, for me! The Instant Pot stew that was started before we headed outside had just finished and was depressurizing, so we had hot food waiting for us as well.
So far, I’m still feeling good, though I can feel I’m stiffening up. I did take more anti-inflammatories and painkillers with my supper, so that should help.
Hard to believe it’s just a couple more days before we start our Christmas activities on Christmas Eve and Christmas day. I’m still focused on digging things out, and have left all the decorating and such to my daughters. Not that we do much of that anymore, and what we do is limited to the cat free zone, AKA, the living room. It’s going to be a quiet Christmas this year.
The isolation cats seem to be enjoying their cozy shelter, though there is evidence that Pinky has been trying to get out. She’s somehow pushing one of the ceiling insulation sheets out one side, as she digs at the other. I know it’s her, because the kittens are too small to reach.
From the muddy hand prints outside the front window, raccoons have been interested in getting in, while Pinky is wanting out! She’s doing so well, we probably could let her out and she’d be fine, though that shaved belly would sure get cold!
Once the morning stuff was done, I had just enough time to grab a breakfast before heading to my mother’s. I got there just after 9am, and her scheduled med/etc. assist is 9:15, so that worked out.
I put together a breakfast while she took her meds and, once she was all settled, I took care of other stuff, like emptying the commode and so on. Once everything was done, I took advantage of her empty sink to try and use the little sink plunger I got for her, to try and fix the slow drain.
I made a mistake with the plunger I chose. It would work with something like a bathroom sink, but not the kitchen sink. The plunger is a sort of accordion style, with a separate seal around the edge. The seal fit around the drain, but the plunger was just small enough that it would go into the drain, flipping the seal and eventually knocking it right off. I kept trying, as all sorts of material was being pulled up into the water.
But the slow drain was now no drain at all. Whatever I moved around down there, it resulted in a total blockage.
Well, my mother had drain cleaner on her list anyhow! So I left it for the moment, hoping the water would slowly drain while I was running her errands.
My first stop was at the pharmacy, and that’s where she wanted me to pick up some Drano. Except they didn’t have any. I eventually found a house brand and got that. Then I did her grocery shopping before heading back.
The was no change in the water level at all.
After everything was put away, I tried adding the drain cleaner. The instructions said to pour down half a bottle. Normally, the heavier gel would sink through the water and into the drain.
It didn’t.
I could actually see, with the debris, as the gel swooped outwards from where I was pouring it directly over the drain.
My mother, meanwhile, was a continuous stream of instructions on what I should be doing, what she would be doing, and I needed to do things the way she would be doing it – even though she couldn’t see what was actually going on. I had mentioned the debris coming up and she starting telling me to use a paper towel to wipe it up, even though I also told her the water as not draining. Not sure what a paper towel was going to do!
I left it for a while. That little plunger wasn’t going to do anything, and I had my doubts about the no-name drain cleaner. I decided I’d leave it to sit and went to the hardware store.
That confused my mother, and she kept asking about being able to use the sink, while I kept telling her, don’t use the sink!
At the hardware store, I found an employee, hoping they would have a better sink plunger. All the had were full sized ones, so I did end up picking a very basic one designed to clear floor drains and tubs. Then I asked about drain cleaner and he took me right to a Drano produce specifically designed for kitchen sinks. It was a granular product, rather than a gel. I’d never actually seen a granular version before. Good to know about.
Products acquired, I headed back to my mother’s
None of the water had drained at all.
So I tried the new plunger, which did actually work better, in that it didn’t fall apart and seem to be pulling more debris out of the drain.
Nothing was getting through, though.
Except, now there was water on the floor.
I checked under the sink, and there was water. I started emptying all the stuff my mother’s been shoving under there so I could clean mop everything up.
My mother had been in the bathroom, and it was about this time that she came out. I told her the clog was far worth than we originally though, and that there was now a leak. I had read the instructions on the new drain cleaner, which included removing any water in the sink. I’d found and filled a couple of small buckets and was trying to get as much out of the drain, explaining to my mother what was going on as I did. Normally, she would settle herself at her table, but I asked her if she could sit in the living room, so I could get through to the bathroom with the buckets.
So began the litany of all the things I should be doing, rather than what I was doing right then, while standing and blocking my way out of the kitchen! Including demanding I call the maintenance number. She did finally move so I could dump out the buckets into the toilet. Then I started taking things out from under her sink, so that I could clean up the water, but no, she wanted me to call the maintenance number right then. I told her I would do it after cleaning up the water, and she finally stopped demanding I drop everything and do what she was ordering me to do.
Once things were cleaned up and as out of the way as possible, I called the maintenance number. My mother has three fridge magnets with the direct number, so at least that was easy to find!
Of course, it went right to hold. I ended up putting it on speaker, so I could monitor it while updating my family and my siblings on my cell phone.
Then Meals on Wheels arrived, so we traded places, and I waited in the living room while she had her lunch. The woman delivering it normally would have stopped to chat a bit, but between my with the hold music going and the open cupboard doors and a bucket under the kitchen sink, she very quickly disappeared! 😄
The hold music would stop every now and then as an automated message gave the “we are experiencing more calls than usual…” spiel. My mother started asking what the lady had said, not realizing it was a recorded message. Then, when it came on again some minutes later, she started making disparaging remarks. When her food arrived, she ordered me to hang up and make myself lunch. I refused. That happened several times over. After a while, it was clear the hold music was somehow bothering her in a way that seemed out of place. I offered to take it off speaker, but I would then have to hold the phone to my ear constantly, and she finally stopped.
When someone picked up the call, I took it off speaker phone and and spent some time explaining the situation. Once he had all the info, he said someone would be sent over to fix it. I asked how long it would be, since my mother could no longer use her kitchen sink.
They would try to get in within three days. If not, it could be a week.
!!!!!!!
That’s when I brought up the product I bought and asked if it was okay to go ahead and try that. I didn’t want to use something stronger like that, without checking first. If nothing else, it would at least let the plumber know it was there and take precautions. I was told they were okay with such self maintenance and to go ahead and use it.
So it was back to going over the instructions again (with plenty of commentary from my mother, who has never used any product like this in her life). I’d had to use a paper towel to sop up as much water out of the drain as possible, since my mother didn’t have any sponges. The instructions were to add 3 tbsp down the drain, being careful not to add more than that, followed immediately with 2 cups of hot, but not boiling, water.
The clog is so bad, those two cups couldn’t go down the drain at all.
The instructions said to wait 15 minutes and, if it was still blocked, to try again. I set a timer and made myself sit down, so I wouldn’t be hovering. My mother, meanwhile, was set up at her dining table again, which meant I had to squeeze between her and the wall behind her, over and over again. She wouldn’t move. Not even to slide her chair forward a couple of inches! When I checked again after 15 minutes, there was no change in the water level. I still did a second treatment, but that just added more water to the bottom of the sink! At least the granules sank through the water and into the drain, though.
My mother, meanwhile, was getting herself quite worked up and kept on with how she would have done things. She would have called the main office number, not the maintenance number – as if that wouldn’t have gone on hold (I’ve called that number a few times. It either goes straight to hold, or to voice mail. A live person almost never answers). They would then transfer her…
… to the maintenance number I’d called directly.
As for being on hold, she would hang up and call back. Or she would start pressing buttons. It took me a moment to realize she meant she would start button mashing on her phone, because she was on hold.
I tried to explain to her that, at the other end, they can’t hear the old music, nor would they hear any button pushing.
She then accused me of “always taking “their” side.”
It turns out that my mother believes that, at the other end, there are people listening to the same hold music and simply not answering because they don’t feel like it. She based this on a story she told me, in a very circular way, of how she actually saw someone doing that at a clinic while she was in the waiting room. Except I thought she was at first describing that a radio was playing, but it was the “same” music as the old music. I tried to tell her, that’s just not possible. When you’re on hold, the people on the other end can’t hear the same things.
It wasn’t until much later that I realized that the person she was describing as ignoring a call on hold may actually have been the one on hold, with the phone on speaker so she could monitor it and keep working at the same time. If that really was hold music my mother was hearing in the first place.
At one point, I’d left with my mother’s Meals on Wheels tray to set it in the common room, and noticed a sign up sheet for a potluck and game night on the table. I assumed it was some sort of sport ball event on TV. I mentioned it when I got back and my mother and she told me it was being organized by someone who fairly recently moved into the building. She’s taken to organizing things and is very bossy…
…
Somehow, this got mixed in with being put on hold for so long.
Then my mother started talking about all these things going missing from the common room – an ancient computer that no one was using, a piano that was donated that is now gone, and there’s another piano there now, and the TV that was mounted to the wall in the common room that no one watched, so of course, this potluck was going to be table games, not a game on TV.
I never even noticed it was gone.
I eventually realized that my mother believed that all these things have been stolen by this one person. She has zero proof of such a thing. That’s just what she believes. I suggested that maintenance probably took them. It’s not like someone can just walk away with a large screen tv that’s mounted to a wall.
The piano, though… she thinks someone stole the piano and replaced it with a different one.
Which is exactly the sort of thing my mother used to accuse my father of doing. I even brought up a few instances, reminding her of how she had me look at a sewing machine my sister had given me, but that I’d left here at the farm when I moved out of province (it’s still here), because she thought it was different. My dad had “traded” it. She’d done the same thing when we got a new TV, and even with a cow. All of these things were the same, but to her, they were different, and it was because my dad was “trading” things. Those were just examples that involved me directly, but she’d done the same with vehicles and entire herds of cows. She even called the RCMP once, claiming my dad and “traded” a bunch of cattle – and managed to do it without leaving any tracks in the snow of any kind.
That just set her off on how – for 50 years! – my dad had been doing all this stuff, and I just didn’t understand…
Then it went back to being on hold for so long, and how I should say it was urgent, and they listen to the tone of the voice to see how serious it is… I guess I was too calm on the phone? and everyone takes advantage of old people.
I told her, yes, it happens, but not everyone does that.
Yes. Everyone. Even you.
How am I taking advantage?
Because of how I talk to her (not agreeing with her wild accusations).
…
Then, as “icing” on the sh** cake, she basically said I was just like our vandal.
You know. The guy that’s been verbally abusing her and sponging money off of her for years. The guy that was stealing stuff from this property to the point that she asked us to move in, partially just to stop him from doing that. The guy that we had to get a restraining order on, and blames us for causing his cancer. The guy that shows up at her place randomly and yells at her. That guy.
Gee. Thanks, Mom.
By this time, I’d been at my mother’s for almost 3 and a half hours, the second treatment of the sink showed no signs of doing anything, and I was well past the time I should have left. My mother, meanwhile, was making herself upset because I bought the different drain cleaner and the plunger, and I should take those home, because she has so much stuff and doesn’t need them. I told her I would do that, but after her sink was fixed. However, from experience, I could see that it was because she didn’t want to pay me back for them, even though I had no intention of asking her to. She just assumes that’s what I expect, because that’s what she would expect if she were in my position. It’s also what our vandal would have done.
She’s much less subtle about it, as she gets older!
I had hoped to get the sink unplugged before I left. There were a lot of things I would have tried, if I were at home, but this is a government owned and run building, so I wasn’t going to do it there. I got the okay to try the specialty drain cleaner, and that was as far as I was going to go on that.
I did tell my mother I would call back later to ask, which I did shortly after her 5pm meal and med assist. No change in the water level in the sink.
After leaving my mother’s, I swung by the home care office. Which turned out to be empty at the reception area, and all the other doors were closed. Thankfully, one of the staff came in while I was reading various signs to figure out what I was supposed to do to get through to someone directly. She asked if I was there for an appointment, and I told her I wanted to pass on information to the home care workers about my mother. She recognized my mother’s name when I gave it, and I explained about the sink. The staff was going to have to use the bathroom sink until the kitchen sink was fixed, and I told her how long that might take. She just rolled her eyes in frustration when she heard how long it might be. This is not a new problem with provincial public housing buildings like my mother’s, apparently!
She assured me she would let the home care workers know, and I was soon on my way again. I needed to run some errands in the town nearer to us first. By the time I finished there and was heading home, it was late enough that the post office would be open again and I could pick up three parcels I was expecting.
There turned out to be four.
I ended up driving up to the house and my daughter helped me unload – and kept cats away from the truck, so I could park!
I had lost so much time that, once everything was taken care of and put away, I quickly changed and headed back outside to get as much done as I could while it was still light out.
One of the first jobs was to finish mulching the herb bed with leaves for the winter. Remarkably, the sage, thyme, oregano and lemon balm all survived that freezing rain we had, and we could probably still harvest from them, if we wanted! Time for them to go to sleep for the winter, though, and hopefully start growing again in the spring.
Another job was to finish trimming the materials I’d harvested for what will become deadwood walls for the chain link fence garden bed. I even remembered to take pictures before it got too dark.
The first picture is the pile of saplings and suckers, so far. The longest ones will be used for the front of the bed. The shorter ones will mostly be fitted between the fence posts, on top of the boards that are already there. With the boards, that side only needs to be a few inches taller. The longest pieces will be reserved to do the front wall, just inside where the bricks are now.
I’m going to need a lot more material.
In the second picture, you can see the log my daughter helped me drag out of the spruce grove. This will be part of a bed that will be two logs tall. It’s pretty small, so it will most likely be a top log. I’ll see what I’m able to harvest out of the spruce grove later, but bigger logs will be used on the bottom of the walls.
After the trimming, I worked on something for one of the parcels I got in the mail today.
I was a bit taken aback by the packaging. It just says “battery powered” and nothing on the outside of the box suggests that there is a solar panel. For a moment, I thought maybe it was supposed to be ordered separately, but when I opened it, it was there. The second picture is of the contents.
This camera will be set up to monitor the isolation shelter, which means it will be attached to the big elm tree outside the kitchen window.
The cats love climbing that tree, which means the camera will need protecting.
I also want to be able to easily move the camera to other locations, as needed, such as when we can set up a trap to catch cats for spays.
Inspired by what my brother set up for the gate cam, I went looking through the scrap wood pile and built something to attach the camera to, which is what you can see in the last picture. I started off making the shelter, with a back to attach the camera to, and a roof.
I love my cheap garage sale miter saw!
The roof isn’t so much to keep the elements off the camera; it’s designed to be outdoors and doesn’t need a roof at all. Mostly, it’s to keep the cats off of it!
The camera cover is attached to a slightly longer board, and there are screws already in it, ready to attach it to the tree. I wish I’d found that board earlier, as it would have been much better wood to build the shelter part with!
When it’s time to move the camera, it’s just a matter of unscrewing the back piece from the tree. The solar panel will be attached to the other side of the tree somewhere, facing the sun. That, I am not sure how to set up and protect from the cats (or raccoons!), since it obviously can’t have a roof over it, and still get enough sunlight to power the camera.
After I took the picture, I brought it inside and added wood glue to where the roof comes in contact with other pieces, and the joins of the roof itself.
By the time that was finished, the light was fading fast and getting cold, so I quickly did the evening rounds and cat feeding, and headed in.
I managed to get a decent amount accomplished, given how little daylight I had left when I got home!
Today is most likely that last day of temperatures above freezing for the year, though the long range forecast has several odd days in December that are forecast to be just above freezing. That’s in between temperatures were we are supposed to have highs below -20C/-4C and lows dropping to -35C/-31F, so I really don’t think we’ll get that warm. We’re not even expecting snow until the 7th and 8th of December at this point, and even then it’s only 30% and 60% chance of snow.
Looking at the monthly forecast, apparently, we’ll be getting next to no snow at all this winter! That would actually not be good, as we really need the precipitation. Otherwise, we’re looking at another drought year, next year. Long range forecasts are not particularly reliable, though, so who knows.
For now, though, once the temperatures start dipping below freezing, there really isn’t a lot I’ll be able to keep doing outside.
It’s going to be hibernation time, soon!
Meanwhile, I’ll be going through the manual for the new camera, getting it charged up and hopefully it’ll be set up and working tomorrow.
I’m quite looking forward to testing it out tonight – before it gets attached to the little shelter I made for it!
Today turned out to be a decently warm day, with a slightly higher than forecast high of 4C/39F. Thankfully, most of where I needed to work was sheltered from the wind.
I decided it was a good day to start collecting material for the walls on the chain link fence garden bed, to replace the temporary walls we have right now, as well as cutting things away and clearing up at the same time. This is progress so far.
The first stack is maple suckers that are strong and straight enough to be used as vertical supports for the garden bed walls. For what I have in mind, and the space I’m working in, I’ll need a total of 48 stakes, with a quarter of them double the length of the others. The longer ones will be used to support a cover for the bed, to keep it from being choked out by Chinese elm seeds, or used as a litter box by the cats. They’ll be cut to length, sharpened at one end, and peeled of bark. For now, I am mostly aiming to do the wall against the chain link fence, so I need only 24 stakes to be able to get started.
The next picture in the slide show is a collection of poplar, maple and willow branches and suckers. I will need a LOT more of these, but it’s a start.
Some of the material came from maple and willow I needed to cut back to get branches away from the power lines. I wasn’t able to clear it completely, as I needed a ladder to reach. It was a bit too windy to safely use a ladder there and, by then, that wind was causing what promised to be a massive ear ache, if I didn’t get inside soon!
Meanwhile, we have been keeping an eye on the isolation shelter. Pinky is doing very well and seems quite content in there with the three littles.
One of my daughters was able to get a look at her incision and it’s all looking excellent. They are all quite enjoying their special isolation shelter treat of wet cat food. Hopefully, this means the little will start gaining weight and getting bigger!
The angry looking little fluffball tabby is so chill for a mostly feral kitten! Totally enjoying the shelter. None of the littles have shown any interest in leaving it!
I think we have a name for the angry looking kitty.
Furriosa.
😄🤣
That little tuxedo has the smallest, roundest eyes. They look huge because the kitten always has this stunned expression on its face. I’m able to pet him (her?) and the white and grey pretty regularly, but Furriosa allows touches only while s/he’s eating.
Speaking of pets, I was able to pet Frank today! She’s still very nervous and was very cautious about coming to my outstretched and, but I was able to give full back pets, and even got some purrs out of her. Which means our chances of getting her to the vet one of the two slots we have on the 28th just improved dramatically.
Now, if I could just get one of the other adult ladies friendlier! They just will not let it happen. *sigh*
The kittens in the isolation shelter are too small for spays or neuters, but we might be able to get one of the bigger kittens in the sun room. A couple of tabbies are getting okay with being pet and handled, though I think the bigger one is male and the smaller is female. If I’m right, neither are ready for spay or neuter. The smaller one is under 2 pounds, which is the minimum weight the vet will do a spay, and if the other is male, his balls haven’t dropped yet, so he can’t be done for a while yet. We do have older, bigger kittens that would be easy to grab, all male, and priority is much higher to get females done.
Well, we’ll see how it goes. We’ve got about a week to work on it.
As much as I am appreciating the mild November we are having, just to get stuff done outside, I also appreciate it for making life a lot easier on the furballs! Especially the tiniest ones.
Well, having Frank and Pinky in the isolation shelter overnight (with a fluffy feral kitten) almost worked.
We were able to get Pinky into a carrier, but Frank escaped while we tried to get her into the second one. My younger daughter had been helping me while my older daughter distracted the other cats by feeding them. When the three of us failed to catch Frank, we couldn’t grab a substitute, since they had all eaten, and they need to be on an overnight fast.
*sigh*
So, my younger daughter and I headed out with just one cat instead of two for spay.
I made sure to open the gate before we headed out, so that we wouldn’t have an extra stop once Pinky was in the vehicle. The sky was just starting to get light in the East, when I spotted something interesting. Forgive the poor quality of the image. The best picture I could get was quite zoomed in.
I absolutely hate driving at sunrise, and sunset. That half light makes it so hard to see. Especially with oncoming headlights. My daughter was on deer watching duty (she did see some, thankfully out in a field, not about to run across the road!). The visibility was so poor while we were traveling east, I never did make it to the posted speed limit. Once we were driving south, it was better, but when I ended up behind a slower moving truck, driving with its hazards blinking, I really didn’t mind slowing down. Not that passing would have been safe for quite some time. I was not the only one okay with driving slower, either!
It was full light by the time we got to the clinic parking lot, just before the clinic opened. Which is when my daughter saw that I had dried blood all over the side of my hand! Frank got me good, when I tried to pick her up!
Thankfully, we keep wet wipes in the truck.
Pinky was very quiet for the entire drive in, which was almost scary after a while. She had been scrambling to get out of the carrier before we put her into the truck and then nothing for the entire ride!
After we checked her in, they took her carrier to where they could keep her in a larger kennel until her surgery. My daughter and I then headed out, first to get some gas, then grab breakfast. We went to the McDonalds in the Walmart, because there really wasn’t anything else for that time of the morning.
Then we did some shopping. I had to pick up more kibble for both inside and outside cats, plus I got extra wet cat food, as kitties recovering in the isolation shelter get treated extra special while they are stuck in there, and that includes their own wet cat food. By the time I got the cat supplies, plus some household supplies, my budget was pretty much done. One thing I needed to get, but didn’t have much budget for anymore, was new work boots suitable for the winter. Both my regular work boots and my steel toed shoes are falling apart and are just not wearable anymore. My daughter, however, went looking for different boots for me to try on. When I saw the price, though, they were out of budget. Not by a lot, but enough that I wasn’t going to get them – but my daughter insisted that she would buy them for me! That was really sweet of her. She’s getting a disability income now, but it’s a paltry sum.
Aside from that, I had a few smaller items for my husband, such as more distilled water for his CPAP humidifier, while my daughter had her own shopping list. We took our time about it, since we knew it would be a while before the vet clinic called.
After the shopping was done and in the truck, we sat in the truck for a while and talked. Which is when I realized I’d forgotten a few things. Things we could get at the nearby Dollarama. So we went there next. Along with my forgotten items, I found some things for my mother. The one thing I knew she wanted, we couldn’t find in either store; a sink plunger. Her kitchen sink drains very slowly. She’s called about it before and they sent someone to pour drain cleaner down the pipes, and that was it. The problem never went away. So she’s been asking for a sink plunger for some time, and this time I actually remembered while I was out and about.
We didn’t find one at the Dollarama, but I did find an affordable cat cave; one with wire supports on the outside, that would keep cats from crushing it!
That done, we headed across the street to the Canadian Tire. We actually found several tyles of sink plungers there! I picked one that I thought would be easier for my mother’s mobility.
Another thing I remembered I wanted to pick up were more furnace filters, as we are on our last 3 pack. Canadian Tire is the only place I’ve been able to find the 20″x20″x1″ size our furnace needs. I just about lost it when I found them – and saw the price! A 2 pack for $42.99! Singles were $31.99!
I remember getting 3 packs for under $10.
After looking around, I found some off brand filters that were exactly like what we’ve been using. A three pack for only $7.99 What a difference!
By the time we were done there, it wasn’t even noon yet. It could still be a couple of hours before they called us. So my daughter and I went for lunch.
At McDonalds. Because that was what I had a budget for.
Twice in one day is a bit much!
After lunch, we decided to just go back to the clinic and sit in the parking lot to wait. We both ended up leaning our seats back and napping! My phone kept going off, though, so I didn’t get much of a nap. When it was getting closer to 2pm and we hadn’t gotten a call yet, I figured I would go in and ask.
Pinky hadn’t gone in for surgery yet!
That just blew me away. They’d never been this late before! In fact, knowing that I’m hanging around town because we live so far away, they’ve always made a point of getting our cats done as quickly as they could. Usually, I would have been on my way home by 2, or even earlier. Poor Pinky would have been so very hungry by then! I was assured they would call me when she was done.
So we waited some more – and fretted. They must have gotten her in shortly after I asked about her, because I got a call just before 2:30, saying she was done and recovering, and that I could pick her up after 3.
We ended up going in early, as we needed to use their facilities before our drive home, and they were able to get Pinky out right away. All I had to do was give them the marked envelop for the donated, and they gave me an after care printout.
Poor Pinkly was pretty upset when my daughter tried to put the carrier into the back of the cab. In the end, she held the carrier on her lap for the drive home. Pinky was quiet, but she would try to claw and bite at the door to get out. Most alarming was that she frequently stopped to just pant.
I did manage a picture before we got her into the truck. Not a very good one!
In the first picture, you can actually see that she’s panting.
The next picture, my daughter had taken for me earlier, of the damage Frank did to my hand – after I’d cleaned the dried blood away! That one didn’t hurt at all. Oddly, it was a less deep scratch under my thumb that actually stung more.
In the last picture, Pinky is all tucked into the isolation shelter, with the fluffy feral. They quite enjoyed their wet cat food that my daughter gave them, while I distracted the other cats with their softened kibble feeding.
After they were fed and everything was put away, I set up the new cat cave. It was immediately explored!
Havarti is almost too big for it! The little ones could certainly fit in there. They currently like to crowd into the blue striped one. That one is taller, but has a smaller base than this one.
Of course, we’ve been checking on Pinky and her companion often through the evening. Usually, all looked well. However, as I was writing this post, I paused to go into the kitchen. I heard a commotion out the window and feared Pinky was trying to escape.
Nope.
I found three or four big raccoons, trying to break into the shelter! There wasn’t even any food left inside, but they still were trying to get int! Two or three were on the roof, and one was at the ramp door below, when they all scattered as I stepped outside.
This is not good. I really don’t think the shelter is raccoon proof! Those buggers have hands. They might be able to open, or pull out, the sliding windows, or tear apart the roof panels.
While I was finishing things up outside, before it got dark, I did see Frank.
It’s going to take a while to regain her trust. She won’t let me near her anymore! We really need to work on that. We have two cats booked on the 28th. We really want to get her spayed. She is so small, and I remember how bloody she was the day she had her kittens.
Meanwhile…
Before we got home, my husband sent a note saying that my mother had called and left a message. When I checked the answering machine, though, I found a message that had been left earlier.
Much earlier. While we were still on the road.
It was home care, saying they had a list minute cancellation for my mother’s morning med assist. The scheduler did at that they had someone that could eventually do her med assist, but it would be so late that it would be about the same time my mother was getting her lunch meal assist. The scheduler even left a number for me to call.
Neither my husband nor daughter had heard the call come in, and the scheduler never tried to call my cell phone.
I thought that maybe my mother still got her med assist later, but when I called her back after hearing her message, she told me that no one showed up for her morning med assist. I told her about the message I got; that they did try to call me, but I was not home, and they never called my cell phone.
What my mother had wanted to talk about was a call she got from the hospital about her upcoming MRI. They asked all sorts of questions to make sure that my mother had nothing metal on or in her body. She had forgotten to mention her dentures. The form they sent for her to fill out did include dentures, which we checked off, but my mother doesn’t remember that and is now all worried about it.
Aside from that, though, her main reason for calling me was because neither I nor my siblings have called her in a few days. I’d spent most of Friday with her, so it hasn’t actually been that long – and I did mention to her that I had an appointment today, but she forgot. When I updated my siblings about the missed home care visit, my brother mentioned he’d just done a 13 hour day, and still didn’t finish what he needed to do, but had to call it a day. I’ve told my mother as often as I can, that my brother works very long hours at his job – sometimes odd hours, due to time zones – but she still expects him to be able to drop everything to tend to her. Even today, when I told her about the call I got from home care, she was asking “why are they calling you?” I don’t know how many times we’ve explained to her that I’m at the top of their list of people to call. Next on the list would be my brother, and there’s no way he’d be able to leave his job and drive out from the city to do something like a med assist. My sister is technically retired and works only part time, but she has a late shift, so she tends not to get up until much later in the morning. Plus, to be honest, I don’t know that my sister’s health is all that good, either. She isn’t saying anything, but even my mother is seeing signs that something is off. My sister is approaching 70 though, like my mother, she doesn’t look anywhere near her age. Anyhow, there are many reasons why I’m the one they call. If not me, I’m not sure who else my mother thinks they would be calling!
After talking to my mother, I sent an email to the home care coordinator. I did a reminder about my mother’s MRI on Sunday, adding that I plan to be there earlier, then my brother will be driving us to her appointment in his car, so we’ll be able to take care of both my mother’s evening med assists. I also mentioned the message I got this morning, and that I never actually heard the message until evening, so my mother missed her meds. I asked if they call me on my land line and it goes to the answering machine, to please try my cell phone after leaving a message. They know we live in a cell phone dead zone, but if I’m not there to answer a call to the land line, chances are good I’m out and about and can get a signal. Even if I’m just outside in the yard, I’m more likely to have a call get through than if I’m in the house.
We’ll see how that works out.
For the next while, I actually get to stay home until it’s time for my mother’s MRI. I asked about doing another grocery shopping trip for her on Friday, but she said no. The daytime temperatures are expected to be fairly warm, which I plan to take full advantage off, as much as possible. It will also be good for Pinky and her fluffy companion in the isolation shelter. Though, after what happened with the raccoons, I’m thinking we should look into getting an outdoor security camera that will allow us to keep an eye on the isolation shelter more easily. Considering how much use it will get in the winter, it might be worth the investment. Something solar powered. I’ll have to do some research on that.
Anyhow, that’s how things worked out today. It’s unfortunate Frank managed to escape this morning, but at least Pinky is done and seems to be doing quite well, so far.
As long as we can keep the raccoons out of the isolation shelter!!
Today’s main thing was getting the truck to the garage to get that leaking seal replaced, along with the tire sensor, which would also replace the valve with the slow leak that was getting worse. I didn’t need to get there until 10, so there wasn’t too much of a hurry.
I still left early, of course. I always try to leave early! I’d rather be half an hour early, than 5 minutes late, for anything.
When dropping off the keys and talking about the work that was scheduled to be done, I asked if they could give all the tires a check, too. I freely admit, I’m paranoid about tires! There is one more that has a slow leak in the valve, but both rear tires will need their sensors replaced. Even the one tire that has been rock solid the whole time. The last time I got a sensor replaced, they checked the other tires and couldn’t get any readings off them, which meant the batteries were likely dead, and it’s repair by replacement for that. They were fine with checking the rest, too.
After that, I headed across town (all 6 blocks or so), with a plan of stopping at various places on the way back to look for things. I did have to stop for breakfast first, though. I forgot to eat before I left and was starting to get dizzy.
My first stop after breakfast was not productive; I didn’t find anything I was hoping to. I had some things I wanted to pick up for my husband that I wasn’t able to get yesterday, while in my mother’s town. I found some of those at the next stop. My last stop was a hardware store, were I was able to find a couple more things I needed.
By then, it was almost an hour past my appointment time, so I headed to the garage. I could see the truck hadn’t been moved, though. They had a vehicle stuck on a lift, waiting for parts, so they weren’t able to get to it yet.
At that point, I needed to just sit down, as my hip was starting to give out on my. Which was good, because I got to talk to the mechanic that was working on my truck. He knew he was from our area, and that he knew my brother, and really felt I should have know who he was. I finally had a chance to ask his name.
Well, no wonder he seemed familiar! He was the guy that helped us out on the road, when the truck started screaming at us and we discovered all the problems we were having with the oil system! That was two years ago! After having to replace the MAF sensor – twice! – it took this long to find where and why we were slowly losing oil.
They were able to get the truck in soon after I got there. The seal was replaced, then they worked on the tire sensor. Once that was back on, they ran the truck for a bit, then raised it back up on the lift to make sure nothing was leaking anymore, and everything was nice and dry!
Once it was at floor level again, they started checking the other tires. I could see them through the office window as they went around with their device, checking each tire.
Then doing it again.
Then they topped up all the tires for me, and went around again!
When they came back to the office and I was settling the bill ($226 and change, after taxes), we chatted about the tires. The new sensor was programmed, but they were not able to connect properly to the back tires. I was told that, after driving about 15km at speed, the new sensor should get recognized by the onboard computer and it would reset itself. The “service tire monitoring system” notice should go away, along with that one dashboard light for the tires, by the time I got home. If it doesn’t go away, they’ll need to check the back tire sensors again.
I told him I didn’t expect the light and warning to go away, and fully expect to have to replace both sensors on the back tires. When it’s in budget again. The tires are fine. That’s the main thing.
The warnings were still there when I got home. We’ll see if they’re still there when I leave for my mother’s tomorrow. I expect they will be.
Everything went well, otherwise, and the truck was good to go. My next stop was across the street to the grocery store. I still had one more thing on my husband’s list, plus I wanted to get ingredients for the chicken stock I’ll be making for my mother, tomorrow. I want to get it started before I leave to get her groceries, and planned to do the prep tonight, first.
I ended up making a much larger shopping trip than planned! Normally, I wouldn’t do a mid month top up like this, so soon after doing a Costco trip, but there were some really good sales I wanted to take advantage of.
This is what $155.69 looks like.
Which is actually quite a bit more for the money that usual!
Here is what I got – sorry for the poor photo quality. I didn’t realize how bad it was until I uploaded the image!
From the top: there’s a case of Fresca, which was the one thing left my husband had requested. On sale, but that just put it back to the regular price it was a couple of months ago.
The large bag of cornmeal was not on sale. When we first started buying these large bags, they were under $4. Now, they’re over $7! But, we were running low, and I’d like to bake some cornbread.
I remembered to get some white wine vinegar, as we were out. We were also running low on pancake syrup and it was on sale, so I got a bottle. The tea I got is something new to try. It has chicory root in it and is “coffee inspired”. We have chicory seeds, so I figured trying some in a tea would be a good idea.
The Monster was for the drive home. We were out of apple cider vinegar, and I wanted to use some in my mother’s stock, so I picked some up. I also got freezer bags that were on sale. One of them will go to my mother’s, so I can pack up the cooked chicken in smaller bags to make it easier for home care to prep her meals.
Lactose free cheese, mostly for my husband. The digestive enzymes I got at Costco don’t seem to be helping him, he tells me.
We did not need more eggs, but the 18s were on sale, so I got a couple. We’ll be hard boiling a bunch of them to keep handy for snacks, or to make egg salad with, now that we have so many eggs on hand.
The cabbage is for ourselves, but the onions are for ourselves as well as to prep for my mother, tomorrow. Same with the ginger root, carrots and celery. The 3 pound bag of apples was for home, though – and a really good sale! Apples have been insanely expensive lately. I look forward to having our own, but it’ll be a few years yet!
The salad mixes where the big savings. I’d already picked up some at my mother’s town yesterday at an excellent sale price, but these were even better. These salad mixes are usually over $7 a bag, but with the sale, they were under $4 a bag! Plus, extra points. If I didn’t know we wouldn’t have the room in our fridge, I would have gotten more.
Another good sale was on whole chicken, so I got a larger one. Normally, it would have cost almost $20, instead of just under $12. The pork sirloin roast was Buy One Get One Free, so I picked up a couple of the largest ones that were left. There was bacon on sale, too, so I picked up a package. Last on the receipt was a chicken salad sandwich to eat during the drive home. It was well past lunch time by then.
Then, when it came time to pay, I had enough points on my loyalty card to get $10 off – but got enough points with all the promos that I once again have enough points to get $10 off the next time I use it!
So with all the sales and discounts, not counting the sales on items priced by weight, since that’s applied before they get to the checkout, I had a total of $54.34 off. Add on the loyalty points discount, I got a total of $64.34 taken off my bill.
Not too shabby.
After one more stop at a gas station, I finally headed home. After my daughter helped me unload the truck, it was late enough to feed the cats outside. I even remembered to call my mother to remind her to take the chicken out of her freezer for the stock I will be making her tomorrow. I made sure to tell her not to get her own little pot and frying pan out again, as I was going to be bringing a bigger pot to use this time.
I was out again, about an hour later, to do my evening rounds, cutting some fresh herbs to use in my mother’s stock, before commandeering the kitchen. I now have a bag ready with our smaller stock pot, a good, sharp kitchen knife, and various ingredients that don’t need to be refrigerated, set aside. In the morning, I just need to grab some prepped ingredients from the fridge and that’s it.
Normally, my mother doesn’t do much when she makes her chicken stock. Last time, I included carrots, celery and onion, and she told me she only just used onion. I know she normally would not be too keen on trying new and different ingredients, like the apple cider vinegar, ginger and turmeric I’m bringing. She can get very angry over the idea of trying new things. She has been talking about problems with her digestion, though, and I specifically looked up a recipe for “gut healthy” chicken stock. I think it might help her be willing to try something new, if I explain it that way.
Meanwhile, I found we still had two last packages of meaty beef bones hiding in the chest freezer, from our last beef share purchase. I’ve got those thawing out with plans to make bone broth in the slow cooker.
All in all, it turned out to be a more productive day than I originally expected!
Tomorrow, we’re expecting a high of 10C/50F, but I won’t be home to take advantage of it to get stuff done outside. The next couple of days will have highs of only 2C/36F, which is when I’m planning to do some final mulching and covering the septic tank for the winter. After that, our highs will stay below freezing for a few days, and then we’re supposed to warm up again, possibly reaching a high of 5C/41F by next weekend. Which means there’s still a possibility of getting more progress outside.
Once we get past the first week of December, the long range forecast is now predicting quite a drop in temperatures, including overnight lows of -28C/-18C, so the more I can get done before then, the better! It’s been harder to keep things stocked up, but I really want to have at least a month’s worth of supplies on hand, before the deep freeze hits. The hard part will be stocking up on cat food.
Oh, I just got a message from the renter. They do have a straw bale they can spare, and will hopefully be able to bring it over on the weekend. Perfect timing! We’ll have straw to cover the septic tank, instead of the insulated tarp, and it’ll be much better for mulch in the garden, too.
I so love it when the weather is good and I don’t have to go anywhere. I got so much done today – and it’s not even 2:30, yet, as I start this!
First was a morning of phone calls.
Priority was to call about my mother’s Meals on Wheels being cancelled. I got through to the kitchen number and talked to a woman there. She told me she had listened to my message, but there is no management in today, so she couldn’t find out more for me. She did check their list, though.
My mother’s name is still on it.
Her service did not get cancelled.
So what was the phone call she got about? That is a question for when a manager comes in, tomorrow!
Needless to say, my mother was both relieved and confused when I called to let her know she would be getting her Meals on Wheels as usual.
I also got through to the septic guy.
Yup.
His truck broke down.
He’ll be here tomorrow to clean out our tank.
We’re good with that – the weather will still be good, too.
That all done, it was time to head outside.
One of the first things I worked on was emptying the rain barrel by the sun room and setting it aside for the winter. It had a solid layer of ice on the top, so I had to use the ice scraper tool to chip a hole through. Thankfully, the barrel was not completely full, and I was able to carefully tip it over to drain. It took some doing, since the hole in the ice was just off centre, but I was eventually able to get it empty enough that I could tip it completely upside down. Then it could be rolled to the spot by the honeysuckle where it stays for the winter, lying on its side. There is still a thick layer of ice in it, so I made sure that end was facing south. There’s a chance it will at least melt enough to break apart or fall flat. The barrel will serve as extra potential critter shelter in the winter, so it would be good to get the ice out.
That done, I went and dragged the insulated tarp over to the septic tank, just in case we don’t get a straw bale soon. I’m not hearing back from the renter, who is the one I usually get it from. They did give me the names of others I might be able to get from, but I’d rather get it from the renters.
Bringing the tarp over meant going past the pile of bricks that used to be the chimney from the old wood furnace that isn’t used any more. When the new roof was done, that chimney was removed and I asked them to leave the bricks, rather than haul it away with the junk. The plan had been to use them as part of a path we plan to make along the back of the house that will eventually be part of a shade garden. They piled it all on an old tarp they could leave behind, and it’s been sitting there, ever since.
I didn’t want to move the pile twice, but I don’t know when we’ll be able to make that path and it’s in the way. So I cleaned that up, next.
That old chimney needed to be replaced back when my parents bought this place, before I was born. The chimney blocks I am now using as a retaining wall and for planters were meant for that, and it just never happened.
Those bricks were in terrible shape! Most were broken. There were a few whole bricks. I stacked those, and the larger broken pieces, against the pile of logs still sitting from when we had trees cut away from the roof, years ago. The tarp was intact enough that I could use it to drag away the collected debris and pieces too small to be worth keeping. That’s now with the junk pile for hauling to the dump.
It means moving the pile twice, but it’s now out of the way, and even sorted, more or less, so they’ll be easier to work with when we finally get around to making that path.
We’ll need more broken bricks, though. 😄
That done, it was time for the big job.
I was going to wait until after the tank was emptied, but decided to take my chances and clean up around the ejector today.
Grabbing gloves and tools, I headed out to the gap in the fence closest to it. This meant going through where some old farm equipment and various outbuildings are.
Plus some really massive burdock.
I started cutting back the burdock when I got distracted. There’s an old Farm Hand tractor that I’d cut clear of self seeded maples a few years back. They were growing back. Since I had the loppers with me and was using them to cut the burdock, I cut the maple suckers away from the tractor. That didn’t take very long, though, so I was back to cutting away the burdock. Several of the burdock stems were thicker than the maple suckers I’d cut away from the tractor! Try as I might, I couldn’t avoid getting burrs stuck to me, so pulling those off was fun. Not.
I didn’t clear it all away, though. Just enough to make a path to the opening in the fence. There’s just the renter’s electric wire across it. There are some huge willow trees there, so the cows don’t seem to try to get through the opening here, unlike the old gate opening, which has a chain across it, as well as the electric wire. They do go under the willows enough to graze the tall grass on that side of the fence down, though.
The cows were moved off some time ago, so the electric fence is not hooked up to a power source right now.
In the first picture, I’m standing in the lower area the grey water is supposed to be draining towards. You can just see the small trench I made to help it flow through. The whole area was really rough after the excavator buried the new ejector, so that needed to be worked around.
Those boulders and all the other rocks you can see were from the hole they dug to reach the pipe.
The second picture in the slide show above is where the problem lies. Instead of draining down the slope, things are pooling at the end of the old sheet of metal roofing that’s there as a diverter. The snow fence is something my brother had put around to keep the renter’s cows from accidentally trampling the new ejector. It’s nowhere near as tall as the old one was.
The third picture is of the inside of the fenced area, where the diverter is. Yes, there is a long sheet of metal hiding under that mess!
The last picture in that series is the view from just inside the “gate” of the snow fence.
I had to cut my way through burdock to get to the fence and access the area. To get to the rigged gate of the snow fence, I had to cut my way through Canadian Thistle. Those were as big as the burdock, and getting stuck on those was a lot more painful!
Inside the snow fenced area, it was mostly old nettles I had to get through, plus some young burdock and a LOT of crab grass. Plus a few burrs.
This is what it looks like, after I cleared all that out as best I could.
One of the main concerns with laying that sheet down as a diverter was that it might get blown away, so we put some logs and a big rock on it, to prevent that from happening. In the first picture, you can see the logs at the end.
The second pictures shows the first part of the problem. So much debris had lain over the metal, it actually flattened it on one side that the grey water was, at least partly, draining off of their instead of all the way to the end.
In the third picture, you can sort of make out the other part of the problem. The soil is rough and there’s a bit of a lump on one side. It seems to be just enough to keep the grey water from flowing to the lower area. Instead, it’s draining to a different area, where it is pooling, first.
Worse, it was also flooding back under the diverter.
Last year, we had to use the emergency diverter for the grey water to be pumped into the yard, far from the house, because the new ejector froze. With the ground around it saturated, because the grey water isn’t flowing away as it should, there is a risk of that happening again.
The first thing to do was to get those logs off (the rock didn’t need to be moved) and clear the debris off the diverter. The logs then went under the sides of the sheet to create more of a channel, which you can see the start of, in the first picture below.
There was still the problem of things pooling at the end, instead of flowing away. I’d already opened up the trench more, but there was still that lump of soil that prevented the grey water from draining straight to the trench. There was no way I was going to be able to level that whole area enough with just a spade. Plus, the soil is already partially frozen.
The diverter needed an extension.
I went over to the pile of stuff nearby, where we’d salvaged this sheet of metal from in the first place, and looked around. There are still cast off pieces of metal roofing in there. I found a shorter one that I could use.
It took some fussing to get it under the snow fence, then under the big diverter sheet. The smaller piece was already curving on its own, so I could take advantage of that. I set it at a bit of an angle, then used rocks to flatten it more on one side, while raising it up on the other – then added more rocks on top, to make sure it didn’t blow away.
This left a corner of the metal sticking up, and that was something the renter’s cows could get injured on. I needed to make some sort of barrier.
Well, there are those willows nearby, and willows are known for dropping their branches. I had lots of deadwood around to drag over!
In the third picture, I tried to stand in the same place is when I took the first “before” picture. There’s a willow branch that does off to the left. Out of frame, it’s actually still attached to the tree. I dragged it across, but it wouldn’t break all the way, and I didn’t have the tools to do anything about it. I decided to take advantage of it, instead, and it added to the deadwood barrier I was making.
The fourth picture is the “after” shot from just inside the makeshift gate. Looking so much better!
The fifth picture is after I adjusted a bit more at the end. It looked like there was still a possibility of grey water flowing back under the long sheet, after pouring onto the new extension, so I put more support under one side that will hopefully prevent that from happening. I also stepped on key points, on both sides of the snow fence, to bend the metal and make the channel more defined. You can see that on the outside, in the last photo.
With the tank not emptied yet, this whole time I was working, it was possible that the pump would be triggered and I’d have grey water to deal with while I worked. All it would have taken was someone flushing a toilet or washing some dishes. It seems the pump’s float had been triggered recently enough that it didn’t happen. I did consider asking a daughter to turn it on manually, so I could see how it flowed with the new set up, but in the end, decided against it. If the tank was recently pumped out, there might not have been enough greywater to run through, and I didn’t want the pump running dry. I can check on it later and will be able to see.
Once the septic guy empties the tank, it will be a while before the grey water side is filled enough to trigger the pump. Hopefully, that will give the soil enough time to drain. It shouldn’t need long, since it’s all sand and gravel, but we do have a lot of clay, too, so it’s hard to say. Between the cleaned up diverter, the heat tape that’s still on the above ground portion of the ejector, and the wind shelter my brother built around it, hopefully it won’t freeze again this winter!
So that was the main project I wanted to work on today. I still want to head out again later to see what else I can get done while it’s still light out and warm enough. I don’t be digging up and cleaning any garden beds, but there’s always something that needs to be done! Since I’m taking the truck in on Thursday and going to my mother’s on Friday, I basically have today and tomorrow to get as much done as possible. After Friday, the day time highs are expected to just barely rise above freezing, so it’s hard to say what progress can be done after that.
I can’t believe almost half of November is already gone. Where did it go???
The rest of the month is expected to be relatively mild. With or without progress outside, I am appreciating that. The older I get, the less I enjoy winter. My hands are cracking and splitting from the dry cold already, just for starters. Winter is just rougher on everything, from our bodies to the house to the truck to the yard cats… everything!
So I am enjoying and appreciating every bit of mild weather we can get!
I was hoping to go to Costco today. I didn’t make it, but not for the reason I was expecting.
I did check and the large payment I made against my MC was no longer “pending”. So I was mostly sure I could use the card for our Costco trip (Costco only takes MC, and using the Canadian Tire card helps build up Canadian Tire dollars, which paid for a whole bunch of stuff, recently). The freeze on the deposit of my mother’s check to cover the door was still there, though, so more than half the money is still inaccessible.
The thing is, I normally am able to use that card, even while the payment made against it is still “pending”. All I can think is that they froze the amount because it was over a certain threshold.
In the end, it didn’t matter.
I headed outside to do my morning rounds as usual. Fed the outside cats, checked on things, discovered the deer visited during the night…
Almost all the sunchoke leaves were completely stripped off the stalks, and even the tops of the stalks on the shorter ones were nibbled down! Sunchokes are related to sunflowers, which the deer like to eat, so I guess it was just a matter of time before they munched these down.
By the time I was finished my rounds, I decided I needed to stay home. My hip wasn’t hurting, but it was definitely unstable after a day of walking on concrete. If I were to go into the city and be doing all that walking on concrete while shopping, I know the probability of it wiping me out for days is very high. Better to give it one more day to rest.
Which was REALLY hard to do! We had a nicer day today and I was chafing at the bit to not be out there, working on various projects or cleaning up the last few garden beds. All of which would have stressed my hip out just as much, or more, than walking around to shop would have. At least while shopping, I could use my cart as a walker!
We did end up going out today, though. And by “we” I mean my younger daughter and I. This afternoon I checked Canada Post tracking and saw that her office chair that I got with my Air Miles was in and ready for pick up. Her current chair is badly broken, so we eagerly headed out.
I forgot.
Today is Wednesday.
The store the post office is in closes at noon every Wednesday for inventory.
Crud.
Since we were out anyhow, we instead headed to the town to the north of us. We stopped at the feed store to pick up a couple more 40 pound bags of kibble.
While there, we wandered around, first. I ended up getting a larger syringe that we could use to feed kittens with. It’s meant to be single use to give medication to larger animals, and they had all sorts of sizes available. Some were meant to have needles screwed onto their tips. The larger ones each came in their own container with a sealed cap for sterility, and the containers were only semi-transparent. We did manage to see enough to grab a type that wasn’t made to have a needle screwed on, but just an open tip like the small ones we have at home. The ones we have at home are made to dispense small amounts of medication. What I found would work much better for feeding sick little kittens. Plus, it cost less than $2.
My daughter, meanwhile, found the section for horse brushes. She ended up getting two small ones; one for her leather boots and one for her cowboy hat. You can get brushes specially marketed as boot brushes or hat brushes, and they are very expensive. These are pretty much the same, but since they’re marketed for horses, they were much cheaper!
She also made another find that she was so excited about. Leather gloves with wool lining. Most gloves have some sort of polyester lining; even the high end ones. She can’t wear those because her hands get all sweaty and they don’t absorb moisture well. She has the same simian hands that I have; a distinctive trait inherited from my father. Short fingers, broad, square palms. So the gloves she found that fit her palms were too long on the fingers, but that was a trade off she was willing to make! If she really felt up to it, she could undo the stitching and make the fingers shorter, herself.
Looking at them more closely as we drove home, after getting the kibble, she found that they are actually made by a company in the city! We’ll have to look them up. They are really high quality and cost her a pretty penny for something like gloves, but they will last her for many years. She wore them on the way home and was so thrilled. Her hands were roasty toasty, but not at all sweaty! While in the store, she suggested I try some on to get for myself, but I can’t do wool.
Once we got home and loaded things into the house, we went to the kibble and water bowl shelters and talked about some modifications I’m thinking to do. The water bowl shelter in particular has a lot of “wasted” space. I want to add a shelf about half way up. That would give the cats another place to perch, while also giving better coverage to the cat beds in the back of the shelter.
It would be good to do something similar in the kibble house, but that one is quite a bit longer. I built it so that the floor, which has rigid insulation under it, can be removed. We can’t add extra support in the middle without losing that ability, but without support, any shelf we make will sag in the middle. There is, however, a vertical support in the middle of the back wall, so we could attach angled supports to that. Something to think about. Mostly, I want to get the extra perch for the cats to be done in the water bowl shelter.
As we talked about that, we went into the garage, where we have scrap wood in a variety of shapes, sizes and types that we can use to do this. The back door of the garage is near the outhouse. Behind the outhouse is where we’ve been dumping the stove pellet litter to compost. With the number of cats we have and how many years we’ve been doing this, there is a large pile starting behind the outhouse, slowly extending further into the spruce grove. I’ve already scattered two boxes of wildflower seeds over part of it, but the oldest section still had the top of that tree that fell over the outhouse, that my brother managed to get off and save the outhouse at the same time, on top of it. I plan to use the pieces of that tree to make things, but even the smaller top of the tree is huge and heavy.
Well, with my daughter there to help, we got it off!
It was NOT easy. Not just because of the weight. This part of the tree had many branch nubs all around it. No matter what position we had the trunk, there were branch nubs digging into the ground – you can even see a gouged out trench in the soil from one of them, in the photo above.
The trunk had been straight across the pile, with a couple of old tires to keep it from rolling against the outhouse. We found we could rotate it almost 45 degrees, so that the heavy end was running more alongside the outhouse. I grabbed a rope we found in the garage some time ago, that has latch hooks at eat end (I think it was meant to attach to a horse’s halter) to put around the heavy end of the trunk. We also had a metal bar we could put through the hooks that was long enough for us to use as handles, rather than wrecking our hands trying to grasp the rope. With that, we could move the trunk about a foot or so, then I would go behind the outhouse to move the light end away from the outhouse a bit more, we’d move the entire trunk, I’d shift the top again, over and over. Sometimes, we would have to rotate the trunk to get whatever branch nub that was digging into the ground clear before we could move it more.
Once we got it clear of the pile and lying only on the ground, that was it. We couldn’t move it anymore. Somewhere along the bottom of the trunk, there’s a branch nub dug deep enough into the soil, anchoring it enough that, even with both of us, we just couldn’t move it any more. That was okay, though. I just needed it clear of the pile.
That done, my daughter headed back to the house to put things away, while I grabbed our last box of wildflower seeds and scattered them over the most composted part of the pile that the tree was on top of. Now that the trunk is where it is, it will be easier to get at it with a chain saw and work on it. I’m planning to use the parts and pieces to make some seating or maybe a table of some kind. We shall see.
Earlier, I had set up sheets of rigid insulation under the isolation shelter roof. They are the same pieces used last winter, and there are holes where the cats had scratched at them, so I ended up rearranging how to fit them in.
Last winter, I had a leftover piece of the insulation that was trimmed off and used it on the shelf inside. That ended up getting knocked off regularly, then broken. This year, I had some leftover insulating material that I’d used around the pipes on the emergency septic bypass, and it’s the right width for that shelf. So I put a length of that on there to try out for this year and, hopefully, tied it down well enough to stay there. That makes the shelf a slightly more comfortable place for the cats to hang out on, and warmer on the toe beans!
In the second picture of the slide show above, you can see where I tucked in a thermometer that was in the sun room. Hopefully, the cats won’t drag it out of there. While in the sun room, the thermometer read about 8C/46F. By the time I had set it up and paused to take a picture, it had already moved up to about 12C/54C. When I came back after we finished fighting with the tree, it was reading almost 20C/68F. The angle of the photos make the needle look off by a few degrees, though.
Meanwhile, there is a little sick kitten I’ve been monitoring. I can’t get near it, unfortunately. I would call is a semi-feral kitten, since it will not run away if I walk past it, but if I stop to try and pet it, it runs off.
It does seem to be getting better, though. For a sick kitty, it gets around quite a bit!
In the first picture, it was hanging out inside the shelf shelter, enjoying a sheltered, sun warmed cat bed. In the second picture, it’s hanging out on a step in front of the new door, and in the third, it was hanging out on top of the trap we’ve been leaving out for them to be used to, so that it will be easier to trap cats for spay or neuter, later on.
Well now.
I got a phone call while I was working on this post, from my mother. I guess it was a good thing I didn’t make it to the city, after all!
My mother got a letter from our regional health authority. She doesn’t understand what it is saying, but from what she could read to me, I think it is an appointment for the brain scan she’s supposed to get as part of her paneling for a nursing home. She was able go get the required chest Xrays and EKG right away. The lab and Xray is right across the waiting room from her doctor’s clinic, and those are all drop ins. The scan, however, has a waiting list and, if it is what I think it is, she finally got to the top of the list.
It’s been more than a year, or is it almost 2 years? since she got on that waiting list.
Since I can go through her town on my way to the city, anyhow, we worked it out. After picking up my daughter’s office chair when the post office opens tomorrow morning, I’ll drop that off at home so she can start assembling it, then head back out right away. I’ll stop at my mother’s and go over the letter with her and then continue to the city for the Costco shop. No extra trips needed.
After tomorrow, our daytime highs are expected to be below freezing for a while, and then warm up again. Those will give me a chance to work on more outdoor projects before the hard freeze hits. Everything depends on the weather.
As for today, it may not have been the day I originally planned on, but it all worked out for the better, because of it!
The Re-Farmer 